Upendra Pai Memorial Coinage Monument Unveiled at Manipal

Upendra Pai Memorial Coinage Monument Unveiled at Manipal

Udupi: The Coinage monument circle which was installed in memory of Late Upendra Pai was unveiled and inaugurated on Sunday, February 25 by the Udupi District minister in-charge Pramod Madhwaraj.

The monument is the creation of noted contemporary artist Tallur L N. The 27 feet tall monument weighs 6.5 tonnes. The sculpture represents the life of late Upendra Pai as well as the culture and tradition of the region.

The monument included seven assorted stones and resembles the pre-independence one – piece coin, with images of the Sun and moon symbolizing eternity. The monument displays the Replica of an antique coin (Barkur Godyana) and the image of the tiger in the RBI Logo. The monument is shaped like the three-paisa coin, with images of the fisheries, and a bull with agricultural equipment. It bears the profiles of Chanakya and Mahatma Gandhi including the year he visited Udupi. Similar to the five-paisa coin it shows cowrie shells and areca flower, the opposite face has the Bharatanatyam mudra and Mangalore tile with the year of incorporation of Manipal Technologies Limited.

It depicts a coin with Dhana or wealth written in Kannada from the Vijayanagara Dynasty, and the royal emblem of two fishes from the Alupa Dynasty. The monument also includes the present-day one-rupee coin with the Lion Capital of Ashoka and numeral 1.

The Department of Posts released a commemorative Stamp and First Day Cover on the occasion.

Tonse Upendra Pai was the first member of the Pai family to have moved to Manipal. He co-founded Syndicate Bank to promote the financial inclusion of weaving and farming communities, whom he supported owing to his swadeshi ideals.

The Bank promoted the formation of Manipal Power Press, known as Manipal Technologies Limited today. The same family later launched the region’s leading newspaper Udayavani.

Upendra Pai was renowned for his compassion and generosity. He undertook several construction projects to provide employment and rallied tirelessly to improve public infrastructure. His unwavering commitment to social causes earned him the title – “a one-man public works department”.